Appalachian State Social Work (Bachelor's): Tuition, Graduate Salary, and Debt
- Bachelor's in Social Work
- Public university
- Boone, NC
- About 103 graduates a year
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
Appalachian State social work graduates earn less than graduates of most social work programs nationally, $32,725 in their first year. Where this program stands out is debt. The typical graduate leaves with $22,184 in federal loans, less than at 82% of social work programs in the country. Strong value, but not one of the highest-paying social work degrees in North Carolina.
How it compares
Each figure is the median for graduates of the program. The North Carolina and national columns are the medians across all social work bachelor's programs that report the figure.
Five years out, Appalachian State graduates earn about the national figure and about $1,948 more than the North Carolina median.
Debt and first-year pay at every North Carolina social work program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the North Carolina medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
What graduates earn over time
Pay rises about 47% between the first and fifth year.
Year 1 and year 5 figures come from different graduating classes, so the growth rate is an estimate.
Does family income change the outcome?
Graduates who received Pell Grants, which go to students from lower-income families, earned more in their first year than other graduates. They also borrowed less. At this program, the outcome does not look worse for students with less money.
Paying back the loans
On a standard 10-year plan, the median debt means a payment of about $235 a month, or 8.6% of a graduate's typical monthly pay in the first year.
The government publishes these as ranges to protect privacy. They were measured in 2018 to 2020, partly during the pandemic pause on federal loan payments, so the forbearance share may be higher than usual. Separately, 49 parents took out Parent PLUS loans for these students, with a median of $17,779.
Where graduates work, and what the pay is worth
90% of graduates (73 of 81) were working in North Carolina one year after graduating. Prices in the parts of North Carolina outside metro areas are about 12% below the national average, so a $32,725 salary here buys what about $37,015 buys in a typical US city.
Careers this field leads to
These are the jobs that the federal crosswalk from fields of study to occupations links to social work, largest first. Pay is the median across all experience levels.
Child, Family, and School Social Workers
$59,610Median pay in North Carolina. 13,010 people work in this job in North Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 33,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree.
Social and Community Service Managers
$79,590Median pay in North Carolina. 4,970 people work in this job in North Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 18,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: bachelor's degree, plus less than 5 years of related work experience.
Healthcare Social Workers
$63,280Median pay in North Carolina. 5,120 people work in this job in North Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 9% from 2025 to 2035, with about 16,900 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers
$58,210Median pay in North Carolina. 3,690 people work in this job in North Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 10% from 2025 to 2035, with about 12,500 openings a year. Typical education to start: master's degree.
About Appalachian State
Social Work ranks 30th of 52 bachelor's programs at Appalachian State by first-year earnings. The top three are Nursing ($69,420), Computer Science ($68,675), and Construction Management ($59,809).
Other social work bachelor's programs near Boone
Common questions
The median graduate earns $32,725 one year after graduating and $48,164 five years after. The median across social work bachelor's programs in North Carolina is $31,695.
The median federal loan balance is $22,184, which ranks 2nd lowest of 15 social work bachelor's programs in North Carolina. That works out to about $235 a month over 10 years.
On the numbers, yes for most students. Debt equals 68% of first-year earnings, against a national median of 72%, and the share of borrowers in default two years into repayment is 20% or less. If the highest possible early salary is the main goal, several North Carolina programs report higher pay, usually with more debt.
Most do. 90% (73 of 81) were working in North Carolina one year after graduating.
About this data
- Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid (grants or loans).
- Earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school. Graduates who went straight to further study are not included.
- Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
- Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of North Carolina comparisons when their main campus is in another state.
- Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
- School-level numbers like tuition, admission rate, and graduation rate are for the whole school, not the social work program.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024